Personnel: Mike Ness (vocals, guitar); John Maurer (guitar, bass guitar, background vocals); Christopher Reece (drums, snare drum).

Recording information: Casbah Studio, Fullerton, CA.

With the debut MOMMY'S LITTLE MONSTER, Social Distortion emerged as one of the most interesting early-'80s Calpunk bands, mixing punk aggression with crafty songwriting and a rootsy influence. Singer/songwriter Mike Ness's well-publicized drug problems put the group out of commission for a while, but after a six-year wait the band followed MONSTER with the explosive PRISON BOUND. The album's lyrics are full of the wisdom and pain of Ness's travails. "Prison Bound," "Lawless," and others set the tone for much of the group's future work with a mixture of outlaw bravado and former-badboy regret. "Like an Outlaw" and the Stones' "Backstreet Girl" marked the beginning of the group's flirtation with country and roots-rock, which would become more prevalent in future releases.